This volume is based upon personal observations and recollections of the author extending over six different periods of residence in Japan between 1859 and 1877. It examines how the focus of the West towards Japan changed, as Japan became a dominant force in the political arena of the Far East when it freed itself of Chinese rule and, through the Meiji restoration adopted a democratic system of government based on the West. This rapid development in the history & governance of a nation had never been seen before on such a scale and this volume therefore covers a momentous period in the history of the Japan and its role in international politics.

Shunsuke Tsurumi, one of Japan's most distinguished contemporary philosophers, continues his study of the intellectual and social history of modern Japan with this penetrating analysis of popular culture in the post-war years. Japanese manga (comics), manzai (dialogues), television, advertising and popular songs are the medium for a revealing examination of the many contradictory forces at work beneath the surface of an apparently uniform and universal culture. The author argues that the iconography of these popular forms has deep and significant implication for the development of Japanese national life in the post-growth years that lie ahead.

This book contains eighteen studies on various important phases of Japan's invasion of China. The appendix contains the historical declaration by Chiang-Kai-shek setting forth clearly the reasons why China took up arms against Japanese aggression, and a lucid chapter by the veteran sinologist Owen Lattimore on what Korea pays for Japan's rule. Ever since the invasion of Manchuria by Japan in September 1931 the writer called attention to the fact that, in view of the League commitments, aggression in the East, if not properly stopped according to the League Covenant, would encourage aggression to spread beyond the limits of Asia.

The author had access to many Japanese texts and private documents dealing with undercurrents of diplomacy and with constitutional history; he also had the advantage of knowing the Japanese attitude towards life and politics, the terrific force of Japan's traditions as they are brought to bear on international relations, while at the same time possessing the necessary perspective provided by occidental training in analysis and criticism. The result is a revealing and careful exposition of the structure and psychology of the Japanese government, from the Emperor down, and the only history of Japanese diplomacy as a cause of war that has ever been written.

A journalist on the Japan Chronicle for eleven years this volume examines the history, economy, politics and society of Japan from just before the First World War until 1926. Japan's relations with the West, as well as with Russia and China are also discussed.

A journalist on the Japan Chronicle for eleven years, the author collected in this volume the most significant current events for discussion. They include the financial crisis of 1927, hostilities with China and in particular Manchuria, Japan's booming manufacturing industry, Japanese nationalism, Japan's new empire and its place within the Far East and East Asia. Written from a Western perspective, the volume nonetheless presents a balanced view of Japan and its behaviour which only close observation and dealings with the Japanese people could make possible.

When this book was published in Japanese in 1982 it was awarded the prestigious Jiro Osaragi Prize. It is an important contribution to the understanding of the mental and spiritual world of Japan just over two generations ago. The author argues that just as the period of isolation up to the middle of the 19th century was crucial for Japan's development, so the Second World War represented another crucial period for the country. These years were a period of intellectual isolation during which significant development took place.

Japan's economic success since the 1950s created a range of serious domestic and international problems which threaten the stability of the country. Within Japan at the start of the 1980s there was a strong mood on the right for remilitarization to give the nation the super-power status her economic performance justified. Outside Japan, there was increasing pressure from the West to make her conform to Western strategic interests. Against the background of these crucial issues the book analyzes the economic, political and military options open to Japan. Focussing on the interconnecting themes of foreign harassment and domestic economic disorder, the author points out many areas of similarity between Japan of the 1930s and Japan of the 1980s.

Japan adopted the practice of using year names of "Nengoh" during 645 A D (the first year of Taikwa). Since then the accession of a new emperor, with the exception of a few, has been marked with a new year title, exactly as has been the custom in China. During the reign of some of the emperors, as many as six new titles have been adopted. Ambiguities have often occurred in computation of time, due to frequent changes of year titles. Changes may take place at any time of the year, and from the time of the change on till the end of that year, no matter how short, it is called the first year under the new title. Thus that same calendar year has two different titles. This volume provides a comparison of historical dates of two Oriental nations but is also of use to specialists in Oriental arts and scholars of ancient documents, scripts, pictures and prints.

Saionji Kinmochi was an aristocrat, a scholar and a progressive liberal politician who twice occupied the highest political office in the nation and who, during three decades, as adviser to three Emperors, coordinated and directed Japanese politics. His long life encompassed the emergence of the modern Japanese state, the establishment of the constitution, the integration of Japan into the inter-war, international community and the creation, and subsequent erosion of the democratic process. The story of his twilight years chronicles the conflicts between the goals of liberalism and internationalism which dominated Japanese politics in the 1920s and the right-wing militarism which held sway in the years leading to the Pacific War. He was a central figure in the turbulent, formative period of Japan's political ideology.

The Iraqi Kurds have enjoyed de facto statehood in the north of Iraq for over a decade but Intra-Kurdish fighting, military incursions by Turkey and Iran and the constant threat posed by Saddam Hussein have plagued this 'democratic experiment'. In this book, Stansfield explores the development of the Kurdish political system since 1991. He examines the difficult and often violent relations between the two dominant powers, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), and their relationship with the Kurdish Regional Government in order to understand the current state of Iraqi Kurdish politics and the operation of the state. This topical in-depth study identifies the main dynamics of Iraqi Kurdish politics, analyzes the record and potential of the 'Kurdish democratic experiment', and identifies the present and future Kurdish leaders.

This book looks at the ways in which archaeological methods have been used in debates concerning the early medieval and medieval periods in South Asia. Despite the incorporation and use of archaeological data to corroborate historical narratives, the theories and methods of archaeology are largely ignored in and excluded from the dominating, institutionalized, and hegemonic disciplinary discourses. The volume offers contesting insights, polemical narratives, and new data from archaeological contexts to initiate a debate on many foundational premises of archaeological and historical narratives. It focuses on the much-neglected region of the Eastern Ganga-Brahmaputra Basin as a spatial frame to do this and studies themes such as spatial and temporal scales of concepts and methods, multi-scaler factors and processes of continuity and changes, the settlement archaeology of the alluvial landscape, changing patterns of agrarian transformation, and material cultures, including coins, inscriptions, pottery, and sculptures, in their contexts in sub-regional, regional, and supra-regional intersections. Dedicated to historian Brajadulal Chattopadhyaya, this volume presents a crucial and unprecedented intervention in the study of the early medieval and the medieval periods. It will be useful for scholars and researchers of archaeology, ancient history, medieval history, water history, earth sciences, palaeoecology, historical ecology, epigraphy, art history, material culture studies, Indian history, and South Asian studies in general.

The Northern Wei was a dynasty which originated outside China and ruled northern China when the south of China was ruled by a series of dynasties which originated inside China. Both during the time that the Northern Wei dynasty was in power and over many centuries subsequently, the legitimacy of the Northern Wei dynasty has been questioned. This book outlines the history of the Northern Wei dynasty, including its origins and the history of its southern rivals; considers the practices adopted by both the Northern Wei dynasty and its rivals to establish legitimacy; and examines the debates which preoccupied Chinese scholars subsequently. The book casts light on traditional ideas about legitimate rule in China, ideas which have enduring relevance as tradition continues to be very significant in contemporary China.

This book examines Gulf Security in a holistic way seeing past the narrow military aspect and also trying to debunk the conventional narratives propagated by regional and external actors. In particular, the emphasis is be on the historical legacy of Gulf security and the fundamental domestic and international vulnerabilities of the various states in the region. This approach proves important in light of the recent efforts by Gulf states to recast their position in the international arena trying to peddle an image of self-assertiveness and autonomy in the security sphere. These new diplomatic stances do not seem to be borne out by their current security policies that are marked by apparent continuity with past practices. In particular, the new Gulf-Asia nexus and the claims by Gulf monarchies that regional confidence building measures are appearing on the horizon are placed under critical scrutiny. This is done by a sobering examination of the balance of threat in the region, the historical amity/enmity patterns and the evolving American stance. A shorter, modified version of this book was previously published as a special issue of the British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies.

Intellectually and visually stimulating, this important landmark book looks at the religious, political, social and artistic significance of the Imperial tombs of the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD). It traces the evolutionary development of the most elaborately beautiful imperial tombs to examine fundamental issues on death and the afterlife in one of the world's most sophisticated civilizations. Selected tombs are presented in terms of their structure, artistic programs and their purposes. The author sets the tombs in the context of Chinese attitudes towards the afterlife, the politics of mausoleum architecture, and the artistic vocabulary which was becoming the mainstream of Chinese civilization.

Chaos in Yemen challenges recent interpretations of Yemen's complex social, political and economic transformations since unification in 1990. By offering a new perspective to the violence afflicting the larger region, it explains why the 'Abdullah 'Ali Salih regime has become the principal beneficiary of these conflicts. Adopting an inter-disciplinary approach, the author offers an alternative understanding of what is creating discord in the Red Sea region by integrating the region's history to an interpretation of current events. In turn, by refusing to solely link Yemen to the "global struggle against Islamists," this work sheds new light on the issues policy-makers are facing in the larger Middle East. As such, this study offers an alternative perspective to Yemen's complex domestic affairs that challenge the over-emphasis on the tribe and sectarianism. Offering an alternative set of approaches to studying societies facing new forms of state authoritarianism, this timely contribution will be of great relevance to students and scholars of the Middle East and the larger Islamic world, Conflict Resolution, Comparative Politics, and International Relations.

First published in 1937 this is a collection of articles written by the author under the pseudonym 'Waseda Eisaku' for the Japan Tourist Bureau's magazine over twenty five years. Intended to satisfy the intellectual curiosity of cultivated tourists from abroad by giving the insider's view of all things Japanese, it was published as a book just before the outbreak of World War II.

Writing in the first person, Katsumata becomes both guide and confidante, writing about his own travel experiences in Japan and about Japanese customs and practices that interest him, such as traditional incense ceremonies, or fishing with rod and creel. This personal approach results in an unusual selection of topics and itineraries including tray landscapes, old Japanese clocks, hot springs, Japanese humour, sumo wrestling, pines in Japanese scenery, the Japanese sun flag and Buddhist temple bells. The author not only describes, but draws the reader into his own experiences - his joy on buying an antiquarian book he cannot really afford, the monotony he feels when travelling too long through snowy landscapes, the delight he takes in telling you that the best bait for carp fishing is sweet potato. Katsumata's unconventional choice of subjects and his informal and individualistic writing style make this a refreshingly different guide to Japan, and a valuable record of the period in which it was written.

* Concise but comprehensive overview of the history * Includes approximately 20 primary source documents * Perfect for assigning this work for wide range of undergraduate courses in the U.S., ranging from introductory lecture courses to research seminars * Written by scholars who are experts in Japanese, East and South-East Asian history

This volume is a history of the Japanese drive for the conquest of Greater East Asia. It includes an account of the Malayan campaign and the Fall of Singapore, followed by an outline of the dominant features of the campaign in S E Asia and the Pacific and ending with the attack on Japan and the unconditional surrender. As a prisoner in Tokyo, the author was able to observe the reactions of the people and the government to the bombing of Japan, and by revealing their overwhelming defeat, to dispose of the fiction that surrender was brought about by two atomic bombs. The outstanding value of the work is its analysis of the fundamental problems of Japan.

Socialism first gained a major foothold in Japan after the revolution and the subsequent Meiji restoration of 1868. Against the background of the rapid development of capitalism in Japan after the revolution, and the accompanying emergence of the working class, this study shows how early Japanese socialists drew on both Western influences and elements from traditional Japanese culture. In the early 1980s most of the world interested in Japan was fascinated by its educational system, industrial policy or low crime rates - things which explained the economic miracle and made it 'Number One'. John Crump, however, was searching for the origins of socialist thought there. Historians of the socialist movement before and since the 1980s have described the thought of those who figure in the dramas Crump describes. What sets his study apart is the degree to which the theoretical debates discussed matter to him. Other authors often lack sympathy with, or seem frustrated by, the importance given to apparently trivial differences that consumed endless debate. However, at the time he wrote this book, the author was still an activist, even though his activity manifested itself mainly in his scholarship. His aim was to do more than give an account of the formation of socialist thought in Japan. He wanted his readers to think more deeply about the development of capitalism in Japan. This book made an original contribution to the study of Japan in the 1980s. Its unique perspective shines a bright light on debates still relevant today.

The fact that the Portuguese opened up the Far East to European maritime enterprise is well known, but the prosperity to which their trade attained in that region is less so, as historians have tended to dwell on the English or Dutch activities. The period of Luso-Japanese trade is therefore of interest in more ways than one, and in particular the first decade of the seventeenth century when Japan was being moulded by Tokugawa Iyeyasu and when the country was still open to foreigners regardless of their race or religion. This volume involved considerable research in four languages and most of the information is here presented to the English reader for the first time.

Originally published in 1952, this account of the growth and uses of Western learning in Japan has been enlarged by two new chapters that extend the story from 1798 to 1830. The author has incorporated the results of recent research by scholars in Japan and the West and made corrections in the text.

Volume I: 'Translated and Edited with a Preliminary Essay on the Intercourse between China and the Western Nations previous to the Discovery of the Cape Route'. Containing the travels of Friar Odoric of Pordenone, 1316-30, and letters and reports from missionary friars from Cathay and India, 1292-1338, in English translation. With a list of 'illustrations from drawings by the author'. The supplementary material includes the 1866 annual report. Volume II: Contains contemporary notices of Cathay under the Mongols, from Rashiduddin; Pegolotti's notices of the land route to Cathay and of Asiatic trade in the fourteenth century; Marignolli's recollections of eastern travel; Ibn Battuta's travels in Bengal and China; the journey of Benedict Goes from Agra to Cathay; all in English translation, with Latin and Italian texts of Odoric's narrative. For a revised version of the whole work, see Second Series 33, 37, 38, 41. This is a new print-on-demand hardback edition of the volumes first published in 1866.

The Japanese occupation of both British Borneo -- Brunei, Sarawak and North Borneo -- and Dutch Borneo in 1941 to 1945 is a much understudied subject. Of particular interest is the occupation of Dutch Borneo, governed by the Imperial Japanese Navy that had long-term plans for permanent possession'. This book surveys Borneo under Western colonialism, examines pre-war Japanese interests in Borneo, and analyses the Japanese military invasion and occupation. It goes on to consider the nature of Japanese rule in Borneo, contrasting the different regimes of the Imperial Japanese Army, which ruled the north, and the Navy. A wide range of issues are discussed, including the incorporation of the economy in the Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere and the effects of this on Borneo's economy. The book also covers issues such as the relationship with the various indigenous inhabitants, with Islam and the Muslim community, and the Chinese, as well as topics of acculturation and propaganda, and major uprisings and mass executions. It examines the impact of the wartime conditions and policies on the local multiethnic peoples and their responses, providing an invaluable contribution to the greater understanding of the significance of the wartime Japanese occupation in the historical development of Borneo.

Pan'gyesurok (or "Pan'gye's Random Jottings") was written by the Korean scholar and social critic Yu Hyongwon(1622-1673), who proposed to reform the Joseon dynasty and realise an ideal Confucian society. It was recognised as a leading work of political science by Yu's contemporaries and continues to be a key text in understanding the intellectual culture of the late Joseon period. Yu describes the problems of the political and social realities of 17th Century Korea, reporting on his attempts to solve these problems using a Confucian philosophical approach. In doing so, he establishes most of the key terminology relating to politics and society in Korea in the late Joseon. His writings were used as a model for reforms within Korea over the following centuries, inspiring social pioneers like Yi Ik and Chong Yakyong. Pan'gyesurok demonstrates how Confucian thought spread outside China and how it was modified to fit the situation on the Korean peninsula. Providing both the first English translation of the full Pan'gyesurok text as well as glossaries, notes and research papers on the importance of the text, this four volume set is an essential resource for international scholars of Korean and East Asian history.